Unpacking the Impact of Digital Transformation on Consumer Purchase Intention: The Mediating Mechanism of Brand Loyalty in China’s Established Cosmetic Sector

Abstract

This study examines how consumer-perceived digital transformation affects consumer purchase intention in China’s established cosmetic sector and explains the mediating mechanism of brand loyalty. The study focuses on established cosmetic brands operating through integrated digital channels, including brand-owned mini-programs, mobile applications, livestreaming, social commerce, online consultation, AI-supported personalization, digital membership programs, and offline-to-online retail integration. The study is situated in a Chinese market context where beauty consumers compare domestic and international brands across digital platforms, community content, and physical counters. A cross-sectional quantitative design was developed with survey of 436 Chinese cosmetic consumers. The questionnaire used five-point Likert scales adapted from recent digital transformation, social media marketing, brand loyalty, customer experience, and purchase intention studies. A qualitative interview guide was also included to support interpretation of the survey. Reliability, convergent validity, discriminant validity, R-square statistics, model fit, and path relationships were examined using a PLS-SEM style analysis aligned with ADANCO/SmartPLS reporting conventions. The analysis indicates that perceived digital transformation positively influences brand loyalty and consumer purchase intention. Brand loyalty also has a strong positive effect on purchase intention and significantly mediates the relationship between digital transformation and purchase intention. The direct effect of digital transformation remains significant even after accounting for brand loyalty, suggesting partial mediation. The results show that digital transformation in cosmetics does not operate only as a transactional convenience mechanism. It also works by strengthening affective and behavioral loyalty through personalized experiences, trustworthy content, channel integration, and responsive digital service. The study contributes to research on digital transformation, brand loyalty, and cosmetic purchase intention by clarifying why established cosmetic brands in China should not treat digitalization as only a sales-channel upgrade. The findings imply that digital investments generate stronger consumer purchase intention when they are embedded in loyalty-building experiences, including credible beauty knowledge, personalized recommendations, customer communities, membership recognition, and consistent service across online and offline touchpoints.